I will wager that all of us have had to attend an after lunch training session at some point. Or, worse yet, had to give the presentation to a room full of nodding heads. Continue reading to learn how to develop training that will keep your attendees interested and focused.

These seven guidelines will walk you through the entire process from development to delivery then loop back through evaluating and improving your training programs.

1. Determine if training is needed. Should engineering or physical controls be used? Should the work process be changed or is it really a question of increasing employee knowledge of safe work practices?
2. Identify training needs. Examine the facility’s health and safety record. Go over your job hazard analyses. Another very good means for identifying what training is needed and where improvements can be made is to solicit worker or supervisor perceptions and suggestions. Also, do not forget to include applicable federal and state requirements.
3. Identify goals and objectives. Clearly state what the training is intended to achieve and develop explicit, observable evidence that it has been met. In other words, a specific objective is much preferred over a vague goal.
4. Develop learning activities. Good instruction that targets well-defined objectives should include mental and/or physical skills required to meet the specified needs. Use of actions and situations that simulate actual conditions are very effective. It is important that the activities allow employees to demonstrate that they have assimilated the desired knowledge.
5. Conduct the training. The teaching format should invite worker participation and provide hands-on exercises to promote active learning. Use of the many means of motivating and maintaining student interest is encouraged. Emphasizing the benefits and relating the training to current skill levels and experiences are among the best.
6. Evaluate program effectiveness. Determine whether the training has accomplished objectives for each training session. Use of student/trainee opinions and feedback as well as supervisor observations and workplace improvements are recognized to be effective for this purpose.
7. Improve the program. Revise aspects of the training based on evaluations from the previous step. Offer periodic retraining. Determine course deficiencies and identify needed revisions by repeating all steps of the training model.

From: Postprandial Premontions by The Safety Guys